The link: http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/06/23/rove.speech.ap/index.html
The sheer banality of this madness is starting to amaze me. Our political environment has become like the Kill Bill movies. The first time Uma Thurman whacks somebody's arm off, and blood sprays all over the place, you're amazed. “Brutal!” Then it happens again. You're sorta less amazed, but it's still brutal. Then, five hundred and sixty eight blood sprays later, you're wondering if there's even a point to all of this.
That's why, when I read this, I'm sorta at a loss:
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean called on Bush to "show some leadership and unequivocally repudiate Rove's divisive and damaging political rhetoric."
Howard Dean... Just accused somebody of “divisive and damaging political rhetoric.” In the history of twelve word quotes, there has never been a more insanely, gruesomely ridiculous statement ever uttered. Ever. When Howard Dean speaks negatively about “damaging political rhetoric,” the sheer force of the hypocrisy can cause autism in children as far away as Denmark. The insane, hall of mirrors sort of paradoxical logic to Dean's words may have torn a rift in the fabric of space-time. And yet, I'm really not alarmed, or forced to look away. I'm drowing in an endless blood spray of political embarassment, and one more bucketful just splashes across my face, fills my lungs... My consciousness fades...
The response to Rove's comments is really illuminating for me. I think it speaks volumes about the craven, cynical, poll and rhetoric based direction the Democratic party is going. In case it's not incredibly obvious, the reason Rove is being attacked, is as payback for Dick Durbin. The Democrats sent Durbin out to fire up their lunatic fringe, he did as he as ordered, took one for the team, and said some incredibly ridiculous shit. Unfortunately, what Durbin said angered pretty much everyone that's not a fringe leftist, and the Dems had some damage control on their hands. They don't want to be seen as undercutting the war effort. So, the second somebody on the Republican side suggests they are, they feign outrage, and demand an apology, and a resignation, and try to link it all back to Bush. Bush is the central evil, “show some leadership, Bush.”
There's a number of things that need emphasis here.
First and foremost, this whole thing puts the sole strength of the Democrats on display. That is, their ability to blare a consistent message. Rove speaks, he gives them the quote they need, and the next day, there's ten different articles all using the same snippet from his speech. There's fifty Democrats making quotes available for inclusion in those articles. There's not one Democratic leader who is out of step on the message. It may not make any sense, or have any point, or be in any way useful, but they're all saying the same thing. One big, collective “YIIIIARGH.“ Then the media goes to a press conference and says “Secretary Rumsfeld, members of Congress are suggesting that YIIIIARGH! What's your comment on that?“ And Rumsfeld squints at them, and says “I think you're a retard,“ in a not-at-all-thinly veiled manner, and the Democrats pat each other on the back. This group shriek is the sole weapon on the Democrat arsenal, which segues nicely into the next point...
Projection. The Democrats project their flaws upon everything they talk about. It's almost compulsive in its repetition. Dean's quote captures this phenomenon nicely. Durbin's response to his criticism was also typical. He talks about the “conservative noise machine.” The idea that the Republicans control media, brainwash, blare a message... It's one of the fundamental arguments Democrats make, and in situations like this it's shown for the laughable farce that it is.
What's most important, though, is the abject cynicism at work here. When Dick Durbin made his ridiculous statements, conservatives (and many liberals) were genuinely outraged. To speak so negatively and falsely about our troops is offensive. To trivialize the gulags, the holocaust and the killing fields is offensive. People were offended that a US Senator could speak so irresponsibly. The Democrats never got that. Their false outrage at Rove's statements is evidence of this. These are people who have no genuine thoughts or feelings, besides hunger for social/political advancement. Everything they say and do is a facade, calculated to produce a result. When I say “I'm disgusted with what Dick Durbin said,” it's not because I expect it to change anything. It's not like I'm trying to shift poll numbers. I'm just so fucking disgusted, I have to say something. But our Democratic leadership doesn't understand that. They assume that everyone is like them, saying things for political effect. In order to counteract the “successful attack” on Durbin, they have to make their own “successful attack” on Rove. They literally don't understand the concept of genuine disgust with what a person has said. As people who live and breath political ploys, it's always a political ploy to them. The idea that people love and respect their nation, their armed forces, is foreign to the Democrats. It's why they feel comfortable saying they support the troops. They think it's just something you say, and you're done. The entire world is political ploys.